Marlins officially introduce first round pick Jacob Lombard

MIAMI, FL - On Thursday, before the big-league team took a flight to Milwaukee, the Miami Marlins made the signing of 2026 first-round pick Jacob Lombard official. Francys Romero reported that Lombard and his representation agreed to a $5M signing bonus, which is $445k under slot value.

"It's been a long time coming," Marlins Vice President, Amateur Forecasting & Player Evaluation Initiatives Frankie Piliere said. "We're lucky to get the opportunity to draft him. We weren't really sure until probably the night before, where it started to really look like an opportunity. It's really a culmination of a lot of work on a really awesome young player, and really excited that it came together."

It was never expected that Lombard would fall out of the top 10. He was the fifth ranked prospect per both MLB Pipeline and Baseball America, so the fact that the Marlins took him at 14 was a shock to everyone.

"I've participated in enough drafts to know that surprising things happen all the time," President of Baseball Operations Peter Bendix said. "That's why we were prepared to draft a player of Jacob's caliber anywhere in the draft."

The Gulliver Prep product is no stranger to loanDepot park, having been coming as a fan to Marlins games and most recently, the World Baseball Classic. Lombard also played on the field, most notably at the Prep Baseball All-American Game. In his senior season, Lombard slashed slashed .477/.607/.864/1.471 with 10 home runs and 25 RBI.

"Once the draft got closer, I started playing scenarios out in my head, but never really got too specific on what team since that was out of my control," Lombard said. "I was just waiting for the call and getting ready to get to go to whatever team chose me."

Since his high school season came to a close, Lombard has been lifting weights and getting his body prepared for what he called a second season.

"I love baseball, so I've been itching to get to play again, so I couldn't be more excited."

Lombard comes from a baseball family. His brother George Lombard Jr., is the New York Yankees top prospect and his father George Lombard Sr. was a longtime Major League Baseball player and is now the bench coach for the Detroit Tigers. That and facing some of the top talent in the state of Florida has him in a good spot going into his first pro season.

"I think growing up and having a family in the game prepares me," Lombard said. "I get to talk to my brother about what he sees on a daily basis in the minor leagues and of course conversations with my dad who had a 16-year career and is still around the game. I think I'm mentally in a very good spot and pretty prepared because I know what a daily schedule will look like, so there won't be too many surprises."

Along with Lombard, the remainder of the Marlins draft picks will attend a draft camp down in South Florida. The Marlins have shown to be an aggressive organization when it comes to promoting players. We saw that last season with 2025 first-round pick Aiva Arquette beginning his professional career in High-A and players have been promoted quickly ever since.

"We challenge our players, that's how we get better," Bendix said. "We put our players in environments that are not easy and it'll be no different with Jacob. We have all the confidence in the world about how he will handle it on the field and athletically. Even more so, we get to see the kind of person he is. He's going to respond really well to those challenges and it's going to be hard, but I think he knows that and that is how people get better."

Interested in learning more about the Miami Marlins' top prospects? Check out our comprehensive top prospects list that includes up-to-date stats, articles and videos about every prospect, scouting reports, and more!